Page 47 of Witch Upon a Star
He turned his head up to give me athe fucklook. It only made me laugh harder. Standing he looked around my apiary. “I didn’t expect you to have so many, uh, stacks?”
“Frames or hives is the general term,” I corrected, closing the observation window. I also had an observation hive that I took with me to local schools to do a bee demonstration with the students. I’d even been to a couple of senior centers to talk to the adults about the benefits of bees and their lifestyle. I rarely brought the observation hive to the farmers markets, because it was just one too many things for me to carry on my own. I wondered off handedly if I could get Starbucks to come with me next summer.
“Different beekeepers use different frames. I went with the cheaper, less flashy versions. Each column has three to six framed boxes. I could go higher, but that would involve astepladder and I prefer to keep both feet on the ground when caring for my bees.”
Starbucks chuckled. “You’re lucky your parents have such a large backyard.”
I nodded. “When I started out, I only had two very small hives and they were closer to the house. After I started to expand, I knew that I needed to spread out more. The trees back here provide natural wind protection too, and my mom’s expansive flower garden offers them plenty of food.”
I now had fourteen hives. It was a lot of work, but with expanding my honey business and with my new store, I was going to need the supply.
“I need to get you over to the club property. I already spoke to Demo about reserving a plot of land for us in the Square, but I have no idea what it is your bees will need or if you need one of those sweat huts in our backyard. The club has plenty of property so we can move elsewhere if we need to, but I thought you might like our house to be next to Dosia and Pumpkin’s.”
His words did not shock me. I might have never stepped foot on club property in person, but I’d dreamed about it many times over the years. I even knew what the layout of our future home was going to look like.
“For now, I’ll need to leave everything here. We’re not moving into our home until the spring, anyway, so there’s no rush to figure it out. Eventually, though, I would like to move my bees closer to home, but like I said, that’s a future problem.”
Starbucks paused, shifting to look down at me. “And here I thoughtIwas the one moving too fast and you’d tell me to slow down. I’m used to jumping in with both feet.”
“You forget that I’ve already been in this with both feet since I was sixteen,” I reminded him. “This isn’t too fast for me, Starbucks. I’m beyond ready to start our life together, and learn you for whoyouare, not just the man I’ve gotten to know in my visions.”
He took my face in his hands. I had to wonder if he even knew just how much I loved it when he did that. “It’s hard to believe a week ago I didn’t even know you existed. That you lived so close to me, and yet I was blind to your presence. I’m not blind anymore, Winnie. And I want this, all of this. Bees, bearded dragon, and even your horde of spirit animals that may or may not be plotting my death. I’m all in.” He leaned down and pressed his lips to mine. “Now, let’s hurry up here so we can get to our store. I have plans for you tonight, and none of them involve working late to get your store ready for Friday.”
Starbucks made to drop his hands, but I grabbed him before he could step away. Going up on my toes, I kissed him. “I’m all in, too,” I declared. “And keep in mind that my bees are not the only things we’re going to have to move and find room for.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Do you have a colony of spiders I don’t know about? Because I’m pretty sure spiders is where I draw the line.”
I fought to keep a straight face as I said, “You haven’t seen my sex toy collection yet, but trust me, we’re going to need more than a single nightstand.”
His arm snaked around my middle. “Fuck me, woman. Could you get any more perfect for me?”
Smiling, I shook my head. “Nope.”
10
CALLIOPE
Iwas in awe. I have no idea how I pulled off my Grand Opening on time, but I did. Well, actually, that’s not true. I knew exactly who deserved the credit, but he wouldn’t let me thank him. The only form of gratitude he’d accepted was a blowjob in the back storage room of the store, out of sight from our judgmental pets, and where all of Main Street couldn’t see us through the glass windows.
I’d practiced with dildos over the years. I wasn’t great at blowjobs because it was hard to determine if I was doing a good enough job on a plastic phallus. But Starbucks voiced no complaints. And despite what he claimed, I had my suspicions that he came because I asked him to teach me how to deepthroat him instead of my current oral talents. I’d let him keep to his version of the event, though, because he was being so helpful.
He spent Wednesday night and last night with me at my parents’ house, and I knew he planned on staying with me tonight too. My parents didn’t mind, but Starbucks still talked with them to ensure they were comfortable with himstaying at their house too. I thought that was very mature and sweet of him. I was an adult, but it was still their house.
My Grand Opening started at four this afternoon. We spent the morning getting kits together for adults and kids to make their own besoms, or brooms, for Samhain. This was an important holiday to me, not just a celebration of my new business. I wanted to share my traditions with the town, in addition to their own filled with costumes and candy.
Dosia, Pumpkin, JJ, SJ, my parents, Starbucks, and I already dined with our ancestors for lunch. Normally, it was dinner, but it didn’t have to be. I was so busy getting my store ready this year that I didn’t have time to prep the meal with my mom as I usually did. Thankfully, Dosia and JJ stepped up to help, as did my dad. I was very grateful and lucky to have such a supporting family.
Dosia and my mom came early to my Grand Opening to help me set up a dining table at the store so others could see what is commonly referred to as the Dinner with the Dead. Starbucks and two prospects named Darrin and Viktor set up long tables the club had for the crafting area.
Many of my siblings, nieces, nephews, and their families also came to celebrate. They also pitched in to help when I got pulled in too many directions. Starbucks forcibly sat me down at one point to make me take a breather and to drink some water. No matter what I needed, he was right there to help me.
True to his word, he had Grumpy, one of his club brothers, take a look at my car on Wednesday. He changed my oil, switched out my air filter, and rotated my tires, but all in all, gave my car a clean bill of health. Yet, I continued to hear a car backfiring. To ease my worries, Starbucks alsohad Grumpy take a look at my mom and dad’s cars. There was also talk of getting me a new car, but I didn’t drive mine enough to make that even remotely necessary. He still wasn’t convinced, which I thought was sweet.
I got to meet most of the club at the Grand Opening. My store was so packed that I doubted I was in compliance with the fire code. But since there was a good amount of the town’s fire department in my store, I chose to ignore it.
I nearly sold out of all my honey stock within hours of opening. My flavored sticks were the first to go, and I had to have my dad and Darrin drive to get me more from my stock at home. I had eight ounce, sixteen ounce, and thirty-two ounce jars with a variety of flavors. There was also a sample station that I had to move behind my counter after people were taking multiple teaspoons like it was a free buffet. My brother’s oldest, Fern, took charge of the honey samples after that.
Beyond my honey, I also sold honeycomb in strips or cubes and homemade beeswax lip balm, candles, and body butter. When I got too busy reading tarot cards to keep up with the register, my sister Savory took over for me. My mom could have also read tarot, but I wanted my customers to get a feel for my readings.
